Sunday, March 3, 2013

KISS, Motley Crue & Thin Lizzy Review from Perth

SOME of KISS’ staging staff may be lined up outside the unemployment
office in Perth this morning – but the first-night gaffes did absolutely nothing
to detract from a dazzling performance by the veteran glam rockers.

Bassist Gene Simmons, in full battle regalia and dangling from cables, was
forced to crawl onto his platform 15 metres above the Perth Arena stage before
performing “God Of Thunder” on the first night of the Monster Tour, which
also included a disappointing Motley Crue and feisty Thin Lizzy.

The microphone cut out during Simmons’ 35-year-old pre-amble to the song,
forcing him to say “well alright” twice.

When guitarist Tommy Thayer “shot” balls of fire from his instrument during
his solo turn, the explosions in the overhead rig were nowhere near where he was
aiming. The flashpots during the “clap” breakdown of “I Was Made For Loving You”
were so out-of-synch that singer Paul Stanley was left with a bemused
expression.

Simmons stumbled over some of the lyrics from the
welcome setlist inclusion of 1982′s “War Machine”, singing at one stage “Strike
down the one who leads me/Let the arrows fly”. Additionally, the mix during
Thayer’s vocal turn on “Outta This World” was tinny and Simmons’ bass was almost
inaudible during his own turn on vox with another newy, “Wall Of Sound”.

But only the afficonado would have spotted such flaws. With Eric Singer on
drums completing the current line-up, KISS tendered one of their most
accomplished performances ever on Australian soil.

Songs which many of us have carried in our heads longer than we have retained
most worldly posessions, like “Calling Dr Love” and “Black Diamond”, suddenly
assumed a new life thanks to the crunching delivery while the 99 per cent of
staging which did work was mind-bogglingly spectacular.

The $250-a-head ‘Monster Madness’ zone was under-patronised, giving those in
the area the surreal opportunity to walk casually around sipping a drink as the
encore finished with Simmons and Thayer pushed out over their heads by extending
cranes and Stanley smashing his guitar on a mid-stage platform amid twirling
fireworks – all as confetti rained down.

Even diehard KISS fans mock the band’s mercenary ways but it was apparent as
one made one’s way out of the brand new venue late on Thursday that Simmons and
Stanley managed to trap lightning in a bottle four decades ago this year.

They have never had the cork jammed more securely in that bottle than it is
now as they enter their 41st year of quasi-religious bombast in career-best
form.

Irish veterans Thin Lizzy attracted some 65 per cent of the
total audience for their early set and managed to get fans even in the back row
of the cavernous arena on their feet for classic rock hits like “Rosalie”.

Folk music standard “Whiskey In The Jar” was a
highlight, with former Almighty frontman Ricky Warwick having little trouble
winning over the crowd with his energetic stage presence and rock poses in an
hour-long set that climaxed, predictably but pleasantly, with “Boys Are Back In
Town”

That Thin Lizzy respect their audience enough to change their name before
releasing new material is an enormous testament to the integrity of
long-standing members Scott Gorham, Brian Downey and Darren Wharton. They come
across as sincere enough not to have gone to the trouble.

Members of Motley Crue walked through the audience to the
stage before opener “Saints Of Los Angeles” and their set was half over before
it became anything better than terrible.

The mix was so muddy that a brontosaurus could have been buried in it. Had
they bothered to soundcheck? It was if drummer Tommy Lee’s DJ set at a local
nightclub had started early.

The distortion and heavy bass was almost unbearable, singer Vince Neil’s
delivery nonchalant and there was a palpable lack of emotion until drummer Lee’s
ride on his drum rollercoaster.

It is just as well no glass was allowed inside Perth arena, as much of it
would have shattered with some of the bum notes hit by Neil during “Don’t Go
Away Mad (Just Go Away)”. The high-fives and handshakes that proceeded “Home
Sweet Home” appeared wan and routine.

Even when the band returned for “Live Wire”, the Crue seemed to be going
through the motions in the most isolated city in the world outside of Siberia.
But with “Primal Scream”, the mix improved and the musicians’ minds seemed to be
finally on the job.

A semblance of groove and momentum finally imbued their set in the run
through “Dr Feelgood”, “Girls, Girls, Girls” and “Kickstart My Heart”,
the performanc rescued from being a complete shambles. But for a “coheadliner”,
Motley Crue sounded and looked like an apathetic opener.

Guitarist Mick Mars’ concerns. aired last year, that Motley Crue are not
making the right decisions for their legacy appear well-founded. This often
seemed like tiredly-delivered nostalgia from a titan of the Sunset Strip
era.

This reviewer has been watching both bands live for 23 years. This was KISS’
best performance in that time – and Motley Crue’s worst.